Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1887-03-05

be added the buffalo killed BY the Indians during
/ tne same period. This number was about ], 215,-
record grand total OF 4373 80 bufTalo killed In
the southwest in three years. The remnant OF the
as be eq 70 that great barren waste
hide hunters followed them until as late as 1880
wnen their numbers had so decreased that hunting
Inem Ior,pront ceased entirely. 1t is really sad
JdeDing TO know that these noble animals were
1 slaughtered by wholesale for their hides. when
those from the bulls sold On 1879 for only 81 Is
or % cents each
In 1876 the northern herd was probably twenty
.imeo as large as the southern, and eorered
twenty times az much territory. 1t was esti,lated
py the hunters and hide buyers that there were
iiules or Miles city, Montana, aiOne and that all
head
The Northern Pacific railway was opened for
sraIie from Glendive eastward in 1881. I am told
py the hide buyers that that year it carried
16O, 600 buffalo hides out OF the country and an
equal number the year following The number
shipped by steamers on the Missouri river is at
present unknown. In 1888 the number OF hides
Shipped fell 10 p DOC, and the catch OF the next
season amounted to but one carload of hides
which were shipped from Dickinson, Dakota, by
>. n: Davis. In 1885 not single hide was in the
had come.
II was, then, the years 1882 and 3 which saw
the complete destruction OF the great northern
herd, or about ten years after the southern herd
went down, and the thOroughness OF its exter-
what remains OF the millions Of twenty years
ago? Two or three little bands OF trembling, ter
sSee1 Sem fIgtiys yanly 70 find
most desolate country, pursued hither and thither
and shot at by every cowboy whose glance
with increasing vigor and recklessness un-
I'll the last one falls. Yes, there are
cases and bleaching skeletons, thousands OF them
with the hide still on, showing that they were
KILLED for their only by foreign and ma
AS result of careful investigation am con-
WINGED that there are now not more than 200 bur
falo alive In our country, outside of the Yellow
stone park. OF this number there are as before
stated about 100 less in the panhandle OF Texas
there are about 80 more in the country where our
collecting was done, and perhaps IS more in the
neighbOrhood of the Bear Paw mountains, Mon
tana. Strange as it may seem there are still half
there are a few struggling bison In the CIark'S
Fork REGION near the National park. In the latter
reservation there are between 100 and 125 head,
and they increasing at the rate OF 10 per cent
annually. On ali sides, however, the unprotected
bafalO are being crowded out OF existence by the
cattle raisers and in two years more they will all
be gone.
Thus has gone the great American bison. and let
me tell you our en-, deer antelope and
tam sheep are all fast going the same IO0y! Shall
We enact laws for their protection Uittch UiU pro
tect nor, before 1t is TOO late, or shall we d1lly
daily about 1t as we did with the buffalo? The
necessity and desirabi1ty OF protecting the rem
nant OF our game is conceded by all. save the
market hunters but III providing the necessary
lection doesn't always protect. Now, II our leg1s-
latOrS throughout the country are not smart
enough 10 frame adequate laws, let US import
few foreigners TO do 1t for us. Somehow, the Eng
llsh can protect any kind OF game On the land, or
1lSh In the sea- for that matter, that is found in
their territory, and do IL with q vengeance, too.
Since 1t seems we are not smart enough to do the
IKE in the game regions Of the great west, let us
import a few EngShmen to help us out. The
first thing Britisher would say to the game
butcher would be: 1.-TWO hundred dollars fine or
six months In the penitent1ary for the first OfenSe
and double that for the second"
returned to Montana In the autumn, and then
the hunt came off. This time took unto myself
three Montana cowboys, who knew the country,
Two soldiers from Fort keOgh, and w. Harvey
Brown, my right bower, came from the senior class
OF The Kansas State university. had the swifteSt
cowboys the best assistant, the most faithful
cook and the best horses that ever hunter had,
do believe. 1t was a jolly crowd, though hard
working one, and In spite OF the toll and hard
Sh1pS.-for that hunt was no picnic, assure you,
Tor we earned all we gOt-there are others besides
myself who declare they never had so much fun
a-hunting In all their lives as we had then.
For two months We had glorious weather, but
Tor the third we had a rather rough time OF
IT. To crown all, however, we had what the boys
called "eegant luck" We fairly aStOniShed the
natives by the number OF buffalo found and
killed, and ours was pronounced by Old hunters
Montana" We got all that we went after, II not
want bill OF particulars meet me in this cosy
III tell you all about IL, with great pleasure.